Mines Wins Three RMAC Golds On Day 2

By: Tim Flynn

Results

GOLDEN, Colo.

– Avery Wright’s heptathlon win and an Oredigger steeplechase sweep highlighted the second day of the 2025 RMAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Stermole Track on Saturday.

Wright and Lisa Sutherland finished 1-2 in the women’s combined event before Emily LaMena and Alex Shaw captured steeplechase gold to close the session. With nine events scored, the Oredigger men lead the competition with 99 points ahead of UCCS’ 84; through eight events, the Mines women are second with 87 points, trailing UCCS’ 96.5.

Wright defended her RMAC heptathlon title with 4,805 points, long jumping 5.22m, adding a 35.49m javelin, and then, with the gold all but already assured, working to pace Sutherland in the 800m to finish in 2:36.05. Sutherland had a great start to the day with a 5.48m long jump, threw the javelin 30.19m, and then hit a four-second PR in the 800m in 2:31.41.

LaMena blazed to her first RMAC title with a 10:39.03 breakaway to win the 3,000m steeplechase, the fastest at-altitude time in program history. Less than a half hour later, it was the 1-2 punch of Shaw and Max Bonenberger atop the men’s race as Bonenberger did the early work before Shaw pulled back a breakaway with his move just past the halfway point; Shaw closed in 9:12.08 and Bonenberger 9:13.22. Margaux Basart finished 12th in the women’s race in 11:30.81.

Claire Kintzley earned the women’s triple jump bronze medal, leaping 11.88m on her final attempt to move from fifth to third. 

Holden Murphy, the hammer throw silver medalist on Friday, added a discus bronze to his weekend with his 48.09m best throw. He was one of three Oredigger men to score as Cade Whish’s personal-best 46.74m got him into finals to finish seventh, and Franklin Rambo was eighth at 45.08m. Keaton Reiman finished 18th at 41.36m. In the women’s shot put, it was Kitt Rupar earning bronze thanks to her 14.83m toss; Wright was 10th at 12.37m while Jennifer Jarnagin was 16th with an 11.57m toss.

In the men’s decathlon, both Nick Stade and Vaughn Hafner scored team points finishing fourth and fifth, respectively. Stade scored 6,258 points buoyed by a 4.10m pole vault and 16.13-second 110m hurdles; Hafner scored 5,948 points topped by his 16.94-second hurdles and a 34.64m discus throw. 

In track prelims, defending champion Everett Delate cruised to the top qualifying time in the 110m hurdles, running 14.18 to advance. Coulton Chan was ninth in 14.92 seconds. Wright – in the middle of competing in the shot put – ran 14.76 to qualify sixth in the 100m hurdles as Sutherland finished 10th (14.96) and Allison Comer 11th (15.02). Mines put two men through to the 800m final as Tim Thompson eased to a 1:52.73 and Shalom Trowbridge was the final time qualifier in 1:53.04, while Owen Schneider finished 16th in 1:54.78. Avary Catchings slipped into the final qualifying spot in the women’s 800m running 2:17.08, just ahead of teammate Imani Fernandez-Gorbea who finished ninth in 2:17.32. Tegan Daughters was 13th (21.76) and Jathan Busby 19th (22.14) in the 200m dash. 

Sunday’s final day of the meet starts with the women’s javelin at 9 a.m., with track events beginning at noon.